If you’ll soon be pursuing the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery–MBChB degree, you may want to have a list of all the bachelor of medicine and surgery course units (it is always a good idea to know what you’ll be studying in a course in advance)
So below is a list of all the Bachelor of medicine and surgery course units across the universities offering medicine in Kenya
Bachelor of medicine and surgery course units
How many units are there in medicine and surgery?
In total, you’ll study 220 units – recall that the MBChB takes 6 years.
Just to be clear, what makes them 220 units is because when it comes to medical courses, one course unit equals one(1) week of teaching.
Here is the complete structure- the core units (of the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery in Kenya)
Pre-Clinical Units
- Introduction to Computers (2 units)
- Human Anatomy (14 units)
- Medical Biochemistry(12 units)
- Medical Physiology(12 units)
- Behavioral &Social Sciences (Anthropology, Sociology,Psychology) (3 units)
- Nutrition & Dietetics (2 units)
- Communication Skills-for health workers(3 units)
- University common courses (15 units)
Pathology/Laboratory Medicine Units
- Immunology, Microbiology & Parasitology(11 units)
- General & Systemic Pathology(10 units)
- Haematology & Blood Transfusion(3 units)
- Clinical Chemistry(3 units)
Population Health, Health Systems& Research
- Biostatistics & Demography(3 units)
- Epidemiology(3 units)
- Environmental Health(2 units)
- Occupational Health& Safety(2 units)
- Leadership, Management, & Governance in the Health systems(3 units)
- Entrepreneurship(2 units)
- Research methodology& Research project(6 units)
- Health Service Attachment(4 units)
Clinical Courses
- Pharmacology and Therapeutics (8 units)
- Child Health & Paediatrics(14 units)
- Internal Medicine(14 units)
- Reproductive Health(14 units)
- Surgery(14 units)
- Medical jurisprudence & Applied Toxicology(3 units)
- Anaesthesiology & Critical Care Medicine(3 units)
- Otorhinolaryngology(3 units)
- Ophthalmology(3 units)
- Dermatology & Venereology(3 units)
- Orthopaedics & Traumatology(6 units)
- Radiology & Imaging(3 units)
- Medical Electives(6 units)
- Mental Health(8 units)
- Medical Ethics-Professional Conduct & Medico-Legal Issues(3 units)
More about Bachelor of medicine and surgery course units
Now, bear in mind that the actual programme structure varies from one university to the next
Just to give you an example, here is the complete Bachelor of medicine and surgery course outline at the University of Nairobi (UoN)
UON medicine course outline
Year 1
Human anatomy
Biochemistry
Physiology
IT
Behavioural Science
Year 2
Medical Physiology
Biochemistry
Microbiology
Immunology
Medical Law & Ethics
Pharmacology
Community Health
Year 3
Microbiology II
Anatomic Pathology I
Clinical Pharmacology II
General Surgery I
Junior Clerkship (Int Medicine,Obs&Gynaecology.,Paedritrics&Surgery)
Haematology& Blood transfusion
Clinical Chemistry I
Year 4
Internal Medicine I
General Surgery II
Psychiatry I
Diagnostic Imaging I
Anatomic Pathology II
Orthopaedic Surgery I
Haematology & Blood Transfusion II
Immunology II
Ophthalmology I
Clinical Chemistry II
Otolaryngology I
Year 5
Obstetrics and Gynaecology
Paediatrics & Child Health
Community Health II
Elective Term
Year 6
Internal Medicine II
General Surgery III
Psychaitry II
Diagnostic Imaging II
Orthopaedic Surgery II
Dermatology
Ophthalmology II
Otolaryngology II
Forensic Medicine
Anaesthesia
Dentistry
Please also keep in mind that all units for M.B,Ch.B. programme listed above are usually compulsory unless there’s exceptional circumstances (and in that case your School of Medicine Board must recommend the exemption and the senate must approve)!.
Career opportunities for Bachelor of medicine and Bachelor of surgery degree holders in Kenya (M.B,Ch.B. programme)
Needless to say, the M.B,Ch.B. programme is a super good course and it can open for you a world of opportunities.
These includes:
Clinical Medicine Physician Careers
Examples:
- Anaesthetist (administering anaesthetics during a surgery)
- Cardiologist (You specialize in heart problems including heart surgery)
- Dermatologist (Specialist in skin problems)
- Endocrinologist (An expert in glands and blood)
- Gastroenterologist (A specialist in stomach and intestine illnesses)
- Geriatrician (You will be offering healthcare for elderly people)
- Hepatologist (A liver specialist)
- Internist (A specialist physician treating internal organs)
- Nephrologist (A kidney specialist)
- Neurologist (A consultant of brain illnesses, spinal cord problems, and nerves)
- Orthopaedic Surgeon (A specialist in bones disorders)
- Orthodontist (A dental surgeon –treating teeth and jaws)
- Ophthalmologist (You become an eye specialist)
- Paediatrician (A children’s doctor)
- Psychiatrist (You treat mental problems)
- Pulmonologist (An expert in respiratory system problems)
- Radiation Oncologist ( A specialist in radiation for cancer treatment)
- Rheumatologist (A rheumatism specialist)
Laboratory Medicine Physician Careers
- Anatomical Pathologist- you’ll be diagnosing and managing different types of tumors/cancers
- General Pathologist- You are not specialized in any line so you’ll be mainly examining nearly all diseases
- Haematological Pathologist- You will be diagnosing blood/bone marrow/lymphatic problems
- Neuropathologist- You’ll be handling disorders affecting the brain/spinal cord/nerves
Surgeon careers
- Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeon- surgeon of the heart and chest.
- Gynaecologist- specialist in female reproductive system
- Neurosurgeon- surgeon of the brain/spinal cord
- Obstetrician- specialist in pregnancy and related surgeries including delivering babies
- Ophthalmologist- surgeon of the eyes
- Orthopaedic Surgeon -surgeon of the bones
- Otolaryngologist- ENT surgeon(treats ears, nose, & throat)
- Plastic Surgeon- self explanatory
- Thoracic Surgeon- Surgeon of the chest
- Urologist- Surgeon of the urinary system
Source: KMPDC(Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council)